Female Care » Menopause

Sniff, Sniff: Facts About Body Odor

Article Poster — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 08:25:24 +0000

No-one likes the smell of body odor, but did you know…

Body odor, or BO, is caused by sweat mixing with bacteria on the skin.
Some foods and drink, such as spicy foods, caffeine and alcohol, can make BO smell worse.
Sweating is your body’s way of cleansing itself and keeping it cool.
Body odor is also called bromhidrosis.
There are 2.5 million sweat glands in the body, 80% of which are in the armpits.
Gorillas give off a pungent body odor when they’re distressed.
Body odor can change during the menopause.

Menopause Symptoms

Article Poster — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 14:57:35 +0000

Every woman experiences the period called menopause or climax. It is the specific period in women life when estrogen development by ovaries terminates. Usually it comes at 50 years of age. Objectively it is revealed by estrogen level decrease in blood and menstrual periods termination. Generally the process is individual. Every woman experiences it in a different way. At the average the physiological process starts in women of 45-50 years of age and depends on various factors. Heredity plays a big role. Menopause may start earlier or later.

Menopause is characterized by full termination of female sexual hormones development in the female organism, menstrual cycle disorders (change in discharge amount), change in mucous of vagina (dryness), and uterus reduction. A word ‘menopause’ literally translated from Latin means ‘end of menstrual bleeding.’

Symptoms of menopause may appear about 51 years of age, but may be experienced earlier. The early beginning of menopause does not mean anything, just your organism feature. But women should be prepared for this process physically and morally. For this purpose it is better know some symptoms to reveal the beginning of menopause.

Symptoms of menopause include: sudden changes in menstrual cycle, menstrual bleeding may be profuse or irregular; weight gain, especially in the belly, or on the contrary weight loss; sleep disorders or anxiety never experienced earlier; night disposition to sweating, accompanied by hot flush; unusual mood swings, depression without visible reasons; and irritability.

Also you can face the following problems: sudden change in libido, sexual inclination may be increased or lowered, sudden change of short-term memory. Though menstrual periods are still stable and the doctors even recommend using contraceptive medication for protection, the women starts to understand that ageing process is inevitably coming, but different women relate to this state in different way. After the first symptoms of menopause, women experience menopause and worry. Some of them getting upset of thought that they cannot have children, but some, on the contrary, breathe freely with end of menstrual periods.

However, a woman can react in different way, but the process is inevitable. All women pass through this period of life, just be ready.

Menopause Signs

Article Poster — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 14:54:29 +0000

Climax is not a disease or disorder of the organism. Menopause is a transient state between two life stages of women when menstrual bleeding terminates. Various symptoms testify about hormonal changes during menopause. If consider menopause signs, the first is the age. Menopause occurs in certain age, therefore knowing approximate period we can compare to other signs and realize that menopause has come. The exact age of climax is impossible to define, because the processes responsible for ovaries activity have not been studied yet. Also we can say that this process occurs individually, but certain average time frames of menopause coming can be defined. It is the age of 45-56 years. However, as it was told above, it can be observed individually, earlier or later. The shorter time intervals between menstrual periods can be the first sign of menopause approaching. During menopause, menstrual periods come unexpectedly.

Before climax bone density and cholesterol level are decreased leading to cardiovascular diseases. The following first signs can testify about menopause: mood swings, depression, chronic weakness, headaches, change of menstrual cycle, pain, spasms, blood sugar fluctuations, body water retention, sleep disorder, low libido, painful urination and skin ageing.

Besides, during premenopausal period an estrogen level is sharply decreased in woman. However, the reason of estrogen level decrease should be revealed. It may not be associated with menopause. The doctor will define menopause after checking gonadotropin level in blood or urine. If hormones level is high, the hypophysis releases them for extra stimulation of ovaries activity. It means that the process begins.

Generally, it is impossible to say that menopause came, even if the said signs are observed. Any modern and advanced analysis cannot define when a woman experiences climax. So, ask your mother when she experienced this process in order to be ready because it depends very much on hereditary.

Menopause is the beginning of a new life for a woman. In the beginning of this process there is nothing bad and you can feel many positive effects. As this process is inevitable you will have to adapt. Knowing when you can expect the beginning of this process will help you to prepare.

Menopause and Depression

Article Poster — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 14:32:42 +0000

Every woman experiences the specific period called menopause or climax. Menopause is a period in women characterized by disorder of estrogen hormones release. These hormones define activity of ovaries and hypophysis. Usually this process starts in the female organism after the age of 45 to 55 years, and its average duration is from 4 to 8 years.

Menopause does not come in one moment, this process is complicated physically and psychologically. Generally the female organism has enough time to prepare for a new stage of the life because the process lasts for long and categorized by certain stages which help to manage with these changes.

Menopause is divided into three stages: pre-menopause (from the beginning of lowering ovaries function to menopause), menopause (the last menstrual periods), and post-menopause (from the end of the last menstrual periods to the end of the life cycle). The process occurs gradually and woman is getting used to changes without serious affecting. But very often women feel menopause depression.

The scientists have been trying for over the century to find correlation between menopause and depression. The physiological and psychological changes observed during menopause depression have not been studied yet. Many mood swings are caused by estrogen deficiency, however it is not always like this, so it cannot be explained by the specific factors. Menopause was always associated with the period when women are especially sensitive to mental disorders. However, psychological disorders depend on various factors. Very often these disorders are related to early menopause. Early menopause may arise due to many reasons, for example: surgeries, ovaries functionality lowering, diseases, and many other disorders.

The beginning of the early menopause for many women signifies the end of life, but it is not like this. They cannot have children, they are getting older after menopause and these factors cause depression. After deep reflections, they may experience mood disorder hard to be treated.

This female menopause depression problem has been studied for a long time by the doctors, and the clinical researches conducted to reveal menopause depression reasons define various results.

It is difficult to make a specific conclusion on the basis of available analysis. Probably, we can say that menopause depression is not observed in all women, but many women experience these symptoms, especially in perimenopausal period.

Menopause Age

Article Poster — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 14:18:25 +0000

If men hardly survive the beginning of the middle-age-crisis, the end of it is far harder for women. Women feel approaching the middle age more sensually. Significant changes are going in the female organism. If say more precisely this is an approaching menopause (climax). This physiological process is specific and though it is inevitable for every woman in certain age, but it is discussed not too much. Women can tell, for example, about their marriage, divorce, facial surgery, their preferences in sex and drug addiction, even about their body weight. But they never tell about approach menopause.

Menopause is an exact undeniable symptom of age. When this period is approaching, life of women starts to be changed. Though healthy food, sport activity and good gens protect your appearance, you do not lose your attraction, you look healthy, nevertheless, approaching menopause, most likely, makes you to remember many terrible stories associated with this period of the life.

Climax is a physiological state of the woman’s organism when a hormonal background is changed, ovary and hypophysis functionality is lowered. Main clinical symptom of climax is the menstrual flow termination. Many women consider this process as very negative and with its approaching are getting upset, but some woman on the contrary are happy to this change of their life and thereafter they are busy and full of joyful life. But this depends on many factors: the process, the organism tolerance, symptoms, and also a menopause age plays a very important role.

An average age of menopause in women is after 45 years. Generally the beginning of the menopause lasts from 45 to 56 year of age. All depends on predisposition, heredity and many different factors. Cases when menopause came much earlier or after the specified age have been reported. The age of menopause plays a big role in relation to this process and the further life.

The menstrual bleeding termination means that a woman has lost reproductive function, consequently cannot have children anymore. If this process is experienced in early age it will lead to other serious reactions. Menopause may occur early due to various reasons, for example surgery on ovaries leading to polycystic ovary. However, in any age this process means only a new stage in every woman’s life. It does not mean the termination of youth and life, and many women start a new, even brighter, life at menopause. So, you should find the positive moments.

About Menopause

Martin — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 18:04:43 +0000

Every woman reaches a certain period in her life when she feels she is getting older and her body shows all signs of this process. Except usual ageing of the organism, women experience such physiological process as menopause.

Menopause is a normal physiological process in certain age in all women. So, having reached the certain age, every woman passes this process that changes her further life. Menopause is one of physiological processes affecting the whole organism. This process is called climax that means from Greek a ‘step’ to a new life because it is a period of numerous changes. Menopause is characterized by female estrogen hormones development disorder. The doctors call this process the full termination of menstrual periods. During menopause the hormonal background is changed, ovaries and hypophysis functionality is decreased leading to menstrual periods termination, change of vagina mucous (dryness), and uterus reduction.

Menopause, except hormonal background change, is characterized by the most unpleasant property, ageing. Really, menopause is a synonym of ageing of women. Menopause starts usually in women at the age of 45-50 years and depends on different factors. Sometimes menopause may start earlier or later. Some women are afraid of approaching menopause and consider these changing as something horrible, some women, on the contrary, face the changes as a new stage of the life. Every woman considers this physiological process and this stage in different way according to her opinion.

If menopause is naturally coming at the proper age not due to diseases or surgery, it can be divided into three stages:

Premenopause — the period from the beginning of ovaries functionality decrease to menopause;
Menopause — the period of premenopause and postmenopause, including one year after menopause;
Postmenopause — the period after menopause to old age.

After menopause process termination, the woman during menopause comes from the reproductive period to unproductive, losing ability to conceive and give birth to a child.

The organism responds to new changes in a different way. But menopause symptoms are almost identical. They include emotional disorders, headaches, tachycardia, irritability, weakness, depression, forgetfulness. Only the doctor can relieve menopause process. Therefore, after first symptoms of this process, women are recommended to visit the doctor.

Fcupuncture for Hot Flashes

Article Poster — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 10:26:11 +0000

Menopause is a time of change and new opportunity. It can also be a time of challenge as the sweats and hot flashes so commonly experienced by women during this phase in their life must be dealt with. As more women choose to forgo hormonal therapy and face menopause naturally, nonprescription remedies are needed to help women get through this time comfortably. A natural hot flash remedy that has recently been studied is the use of acupuncture for treatment of sweating and hot flashes. Is acupuncture good for menopausal symptoms?

A study recently published in the medical journal Menopause looked at the role acupuncture may play in relieving the sweating and hot flashes associated with menopause. Postmenopausal women with symptoms of sweating and hot flashes were randomized to three treatment groups. One group received standard care, but no acupuncture. The second group received sham acupuncture in which they thought they were receiving acupuncture but only shallow needling was used. A third group received traditional Chinese medicine acupuncture. After two months of twice weekly therapy, the frequency of sweating and hot flashes experienced by the women were quantified. The results? The group receiving the sham acupuncture as well as the group receiving actual acupuncture both had a reduction in the frequency of sweating and hot flashes. In contrast, the usual care group did not.

What does this mean in terms of acupuncture being a natural hot flash remedy? The researchers concluded that there may be a placebo effect at work in this study. The women in both groups who thought they were receiving acupuncture had improvement in their symptoms whether they actually received real acupuncture or not. The other possibility is that both sham acupuncture and traditional Chinese acupuncture might serve as a natural hot flash remedy.

This study suggests that acupuncture may have some potential for treating the sweating and hot flashes associated with menopause. Similar studies that looked at acupuncture for treatment of hot flashes have shown that both sham and traditional acupuncture help to reduce sweating and hot flashes in post menopausal women. Based on these results, it’s likely that more studies looking at acupuncture as a natural hot flash remedy will be carried out to get more definitive answers and to clarify the issue regarding sham vs. real acupuncture.

Acupuncture as a treatment for the sweating and hot flashes would offer lots of advantages over traditional treatments for hot flashes. The traditional treatment, hormone replacement therapy carries with it an increased risk of breast cancer, blood clots, and heart disease. The use of acupuncture would not only eliminate these risks but also give women a greater sense of control over their symptoms. Could acupuncture be an effective natural hot flash remedy? It looks promising.

Get a Grip on Menopause

Article Poster — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 04:55:20 +0000

In history, menopause and aging have not always been viewed negatively. Women often greeted the absence of their period gladly; welcoming a time when they would be free of the burden of childbearing, their time and energy liberated for new things. Many cultures have revered wise old women. They were sought out for healing or guidance. Not so in our times. Now it is a put down to call something an old wives tale! It’s a way of saying that something is false, frivolous, or foolish.

First of all, are you really in menopause? Menopause is defined as the end of your period. For several years before that happens you will likely experience symptoms of perimenopause, which is the time when your hormones start wildly fluctuating, and your period becomes irregular. Kind of like being a teenager again, only with wrinkles.

In modern culture menopause is viewed as a medical condition which can be treated. Current treatments often include hormone replacement therapy, or HRT. HRT can ease symptoms of menopause such as irritability, anxiety, memory loss, or skin or hair changes. HRT has also been connected with reduced risk of heart disease and osteoporosis; and can help if you experience vaginal dryness or loss of sexual desire. But there are risks that have been associated with HRT too. Some studies have shown a connection to breast cancer, blood clots, high blood pressure and gall bladder disease. The trend these days is to use HRT for a short focused period of treatment, rather than a long term one, to address the most bothersome and persistent symptoms of menopause, the ones you really cannot live with.

There are many alternative and natural therapies to try if you feel you need help calming the beast. The first time you feel like Krakatoa getting ready to blow; that you feel puffy, flushed faced and damp, and everyone else looks slender and cool as a cuke; or that you’re jotting your name down and you have to pause for a moment, to think what it is; you may decide it’s time to explore your options. It’s actually a great time to think of the wisdom passed on by our ancestors. Our great grandmothers learned about beneficial plants at grandmother’s knee. Today we can go to the bookstore, health food store, or the internet to find healthy products that are good for menopausal symptoms.

For example, products containing soy, such as soy protein powder or soy milk; contain a substance similar to estrogen. Soy can be very helpful for calming hot flashes, but consult with your doctor if you have a history of breast cancer. Likewise, flax can help lower the risk of cancer and heart disease, and also turns out to be beneficial for many symptoms of menopause: mood swings, depression, and night sweats.

Optimal health is especially important for the years surrounding menopause. It is generally wise to take a multivitamin, and there are many supplements which can be particularly helpful. Vitamin E helps ease menopausal symptoms. Calcium and Vitamin D counteract bone loss. Bioflavonoids help heal tender gums.

Keeping your weight down and finding time for regular exercise is more important than ever. With loss of estrogen, many women find that they gain weight more easily. Build a habit of daily exercise; whether walking, some stretching and yoga, or simply some music and dancing in your kitchen. Exercise strengthens your heart and lungs, your muscles, and raises your metabolism so you’ll gain less weight. Exercise helps sharpen your mind, and can reduce fuzzy thinking. Regular exercise gets your blood flowing. Your energy flows, and your brain lights up.

And lastly, exercise can help to reduce stress. Unwind after exercising with a cup of herbal tea, something that’ll calm your moods and your body; and perhaps try a little aromatherapy as well, some oil on the inside of your arm, or a candle burning while you’re in the bathroom.

It may also be time to rethink menopause. Time to stop seeing menopause as the enemy. Time to accept it; even embrace it as a passage of your life. Find out as much as you can about it, and make informed choices that are best for you. There are many pathways to good health and well being. Menopause can be a door opening, if you make it so.

Menopause: Around the Bend, Not Over the Hill

Article Poster — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 04:15:07 +0000

Joanne M. Friedman

Forget what your mother taught you. When my mother reached “that certain age”, the whole family held its collective breath. I have no idea whether she endured hot flashes or vaginal dryness—not the sort of thing we talked about over dinner in the ‘50’s. The mood swings, obvious aberrations in an otherwise calm view of life, were blamed on us kids who couldn’t seem to avoid enraging her at one moment and bringing her to sappy tears the next. If there was medication available, she wasn’t taking it.

Skip forward to the turn of the New Millennium, and it was my turn. But the calendar wasn’t the only place a big change could be seen. Boomer women began flashing hot and cold all over the country. Information on peri-menopause and the real deal was everywhere. Gail Sheehy turned her talents from tracking the basic life changes in Passages to taking a round shot at “The Change” in The Silent Passage, and I got the full benefit of the new openness on a closed subject. Not only was there ample coverage of the physiological basics available everywhere, but there were ways to help one round the bend with style and without alienating adults and frightening children.

Perhaps the most important tidbit we learned was that menopause is the end of only one (not very popular) part of the overall process of our lives. Where my older acquaintances fluttered handkerchiefs over their sweaty chests and whimpered about not being “real women” as their reproductive powers dwindled, my generation wrapped those hankies around our heads and went bicycling. For us the advent of goodies like HRT (hormone replacement therapy), hormone-infused suppositories, and high-tech lubricants were just what the doctor ordered to ward off the discomfort of thinning vaginal tissues and those exciting mood swings.

Some of us lucky ones responded well to herbal treatments. I was not prone to serious hot flashes, but the mood swings were enough to send co-workers into duck-and-cover under their desks. Though not everyone responds to all herbals, I got by with regular doses of St. Johns’ Wort and a growing appreciation of the calming effects of yoga. Suddenly life was good. Better than good, life was great! The down side to menopause—the loss of reproductive viability—becomes a huge plus when the other issues are kept at bay. Wait a bit and worries about pregnancy become a thing of the past, opening the door to excellent times. Apply creams and ointments judiciously, and take targeted multi-vitamins, and you’ll find there’s a whole new life around that bend.

Add to the mix one of the largest psychological effects of aging—the ability to cease caring what other people think while simultaneously becoming sensitive to and totally involved in the community at large—and you’ve got one heady experience.

Only one caveat needs to be addressed. It is far too easy to enjoy the post-menopause years too much, to become insufferable to your friends and family as you boldly go where you never before thought you could. Apply the freedom confidently but with a light hand and keep up with regular physical checkups to avoid being flattened by a mid-life ailment. High blood pressure comes with the package for many women, but it’s usually easily controlled by diet, medication and exercise. Cholesterol levels can fluctuate widely and bone density can suffer. Heart disease can rear its ugly head. Again, lifestyle changes will help greatly, but the care of a caring physician is vital to the process.

With a little careful management, peri- and post-menopause can shift from “that time” to Your Time in no time.

It’s Not Your Imagination-You’re Going Through Menopause

Article Poster — Sun, 05 Apr 2009 03:54:35 +0000

You’re not crazy! You’re not dying! You’re a woman! Menopause is one of those evil words women pretend not to hear. While menopause is a natural process for the female body, it typically gets a bad rap. The good news is that no one is alone. Menopause happens to every woman on the face of the earth. It simply signals the end of fertility, not the end of energy or vibrance. In order to come to terms with menopause, it is important to understand what the big fuss is all about.

Physical Changes

Menopause usually comes with a set of physical symptoms. While it would be nice to just merrily skip through the change of life without a hitch, it simply isn’t realistic. With menopause comes some unwelcome physical changes. Among those include night sweats and hot flashes, vaginal dryness, sleep irregularity, thinning hair, weight gain, diminishing bone density, decreased sexual appetite, and drying skin. It sounds pleasant right? Fortunately, it’s not all gloom and doom. Some women find it quite liberating to be able to have intercourse without the use of birth control.

Emotional Changes

Emotional changes also take place during menopause. Things such as mood swings, anxiety, and a feeling of loss may be directly related to hormone shifts. These changes, however, may also be directly related to the physical changes associated with menopause. For instance, anxiety may be caused by a lack of sleep. There aren’t many people who could get through a sleepless night without a mood shift.

Perimenopause

Women can experience menopause symptoms as much as 8 years before the end of fertility. It is just the body’s ways of making the transition into menopause. This is called perimenopause. During this time menstrual cycles tend to be irregular. Some women even experience hot flashes. Isn’t it great to be a woman!

Causes of Menopause

Menopause is biologically caused by a decrease in the production of estrogen and progesterone. These hormones are responsible for ovulation and pregnancy preparation. This can begin during the late 30′s or early 40′s. Individually speaking, however, family history has a lot to do with the timing of menopause. It is yet another thing we have for which to thank our mothers.

Current Treatments

Using the word “treatment” when referring to menopause may give people the wrong idea. Treatment is usually undergone for a medical condition or illness. Menopause, however, is completely natural. Treatment is usually reserved for the symptoms of menopause. For example, osteoporosis is very common after menopause. Treatment can lessen the chance of osteoporosis in menopausal women. It can get as scientific as hormone therapy, or as simple as eating certain foods.

Medication For Menopause

Estrace (Estradiol) is used for treating conditions due to menopause (e.g., hot flashes; vaginal itching, burning, or dryness), treating vulval or vaginal atrophy, and preventing osteoporosis (brittle bones).

Evista (Raloxifene) is used to prevent and treat bone loss (osteoporosis) in women after menopause.

Arimidex (Anastrozole) is an aromatase inhibitor used to treat breast cancer in women after menopause.

Premarin (Conjugated Estrogens) is used for treating the symptoms of menopause.

Like everything else, there are medicinal ways to treat menopause, and alternative, natural methods as well. Some examples of alternative treatments are exercise, flax seed, yoga, -supplements and herbs like black cohosh, and aromatherapy. Each woman should talk to her doctor and discuss what is best for her.

Menosan is a unique complex herbal formula that helps women to cope with symptoms, associated with menopause.

Menopause may not be all daisies and roses, but it is a natural part of life. Experiencing menopausal symptoms shows that you are still alive and kicking. It is, by no means, a sign that you should roll over and play dead. In fact, it is a sign that nearly half your life still remains. Some women spend that time with family. Others travel the world. However you decide to spend your postmenopausal years, remember you can do so without the use of birth control!